1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a method of connecting an electric lamp socket and at least one electric wire, and to electric lamp sockets themselves. The electric lamp sockets may be used in the method. The electric lamp socket is a socket adapted to receive and hold an electric light bulb. Such a socket will herein for convenience be called a bulb socket. The invention is especially but not exclusively applicable to the wiring of a bulb socket for use in an automobile or other vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
JP-A-6-275117 discloses a method of connecting electric wires to a plurality of bulb sockets of a combination lamp to be positioned at a rear portion of a vehicle body. In this method, as shown in FIG. 13, on a surface of a back cover 1 which is to be installed so as to close a space of the vehicle body for accommodating the combination lamp, an electric wire-laying path 4 associated with locking projections 2 and receiving portions 3 for receiving a crimped electric wire (W) electric wires (W) are laid along the path 4 by an automatic electric wire-laying device (not shown) and temporarily locked to the locking projections 2. After laying of the electric wires (W) along the path 4, bulb sockets 5 are fixed to the back cover 1, with each bulb socket 5 positioned on each receiving portion 3 installed on a portion of the path 4. As a result, a crimping terminal metal fitting (not shown) installed on the lower surface of the bulb socket 5 is pressed against the electric wires (W), thus connecting the electric wires (W) and the bulb socket 5. Thereafter, the back cover 1 on which the electric wires (W) and the bulb sockets 5 have been installed is mounted on the vehicle body.
In this method, the bulb socket 5 is installed on the flat back cover 1, and the electric wires (W) are laid in a plane. In another known kind of a combination lamp, a plurality of bulb sockets is installed three-dimensionally over the back cover. In such a case, because the electric wire-laying path extends three-dimensionally, it is necessary for the automatic electric wire-laying device to move three-dimensionally, which causes the electric wire-laying operation to be performed less efficiently and the cost for equipping the automatic electric wire-laying device to be higher than for the connection means having the automatic electric wire-laying device which is required to move only two-dimensionally.
A disadvantage of a socket arrangement as shown in FIG. 13 is the risk of disengagement of the wires from the socket terminals, if the wires are disturbed during handling or in use.